FIRST LOOK: The News in Brief, October 20, 1997

SASQUATCH SCAM: Director John Landis (The Blues Brothers, Animal House) has told a newspaper that the classic footage of bigfoot walking through the woods is a fake. The hairy creature was actually designed by one John Chambers, the make-up man responsible for The Planet of the Apes' look.

UNATTACHED: Winona Ryder and Third Eye Blind's Stephan Jenkins are both denying a newspaper report that claimed they're an item. Ryder apparently wants all eligible bachelors to know she's still single. She has also denied romances with lead Lemonhead Evan Dando and Jamiroquai frontman Jay Kay.

MY WAY: A new Frank Sinatra bio claims he considered marrying Marilyn Monroe just before her death. Seems Sinatra thought if Monroe was his wife, people would "back off, give her some space" and let her get herself back together. Sinatra eventually reconsidered, but not before having a fling with the siren.

EXTINGUISHED: Elton John's Candle in the Wind '97 has been snuffed out as the No. 1 single in Britain. The Spice Girls' latest, "Spice Up Your Life," debuted on top of the pop charts. They're the first group to have their first five songs hit No. 1 in the U.K.

NETWORK SHOPPING: A month after Universal took control of the USA Networks, the studio has turned around and sold the cable channels to the company that brings us Home Shopping Network. Mogul Barry Diller paid $4.1 billion for the networks.

LEAVING ON A SPACE PLANE? Apparently not. John Denver's ashes are staying in Colorado, not being launched into space. The company that sent Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry's remains into space contacted Denver's family, offering a similar space scattering. The late singer had been fascinated with space as well as flight, even volunteering as both an astronaut and cosmonaut. Instead, his ashes will be scattered in his adopted state.

DISAPPEARING ACT: Don't hold your breath to see new Genesis lead singer Ray Wilson. The band has postponed its North American tour, which was to begin the first week in November, because of "unforeseen delays in the tour's production schedule." The band's label, Atlantic Records, says the boys are finishing their sold-out European tour and won't hit the States until later.

GLASNOST REVISITED: Doing his thing for world peace, Kevin Costner sent his plane to fly Mikhail Gorbachev from Texas to L.A. for a party at Costner's Hollywood Hills pad Thursday night. Gorby screened the trailer for Costner's The Postman and mingled with Frank and Kathie Lee Gifford before collecting autographs for his grandkids.

BOX OFFICE: Teen audiences already in the mood for screaming Halloween thrills boosted I Know What You Did Last Summer to No. 1 at the box office this weekend, beating out Al Pacino's satanic turn in The Devil's Advocate.

STILL SAILING: Harpooned by critics, mocked for its mammoth budget and failing to register at the box office, Speed 2: Cruise Control was considered an all-around disappointment last summer Stateside. But the Sandra Bullock ship flick has scored overseas, where, believe it or not, it just passed the $100 million mark.

LETTER OF LAW: Who owns the letter G? Rapper Warren G seems to think he has dibs. (He has even trademarked his name.) And now, he has sued country superstar Garth Brooks over the use of the letter in merchandising and tour advertisements. Asks the attorney for Warren G: "What would happen if other groups began using the Stones' tongue logo...?"

FOUL BALL: World Series, schmerld series. At least one NBC executive thinks the match-up between the Cleveland Indians and Florida Marlins is going to strike out in the ratings department for his network. "The faster it's over with, the better it is," Don Ohlmeyer told reporters Friday.

S.O.S.:Metallica needs your help. The heavy metal gods want to perform a free, outdoor concert on November 11. One problem: They can't find anywhere willing to let them play. Now, the band's asking its fans for help. Leave your venue tips at its Website, or on its toll-free hotline: (800) 804-1400.

MORE METALLICA: Meanwhile, Metallica doesn't have to show up to answer questions for a lawsuit, quite simply because they're too busy. An Iowa City judge told bandmembers they can finish their Reload and need not show for pretrial hearings. Metallica is being sued by a former University of Iowa student who claims Metallica fans picked him up and dropped him on his head at a 1993 concert. Trial's set for November 3.

BRIDGE BUILDING: And, the Metallica boys played a mellower version of their speed chops Saturday and Sunday, joining the Smashing Pumpkins, Lou Reed, Alanis Morissette, Blues Traveler and others at Neil Young's annual Bridge benefit. The show raises money for the Bridge School in Northern California.

EVERYBODY'S A CRITIC: Jerry Seinfeld is whining about a New York Post poll that claims New Yorkers don't think the latest season measures up to previous years. Seinfeld tells the tab, "It takes a few weeks to kind of get back on track, get back into it."

SCARING UP DOUGH:Stephen King has a new book and is looking for a new publisher to print it. His agent tells Newsweek that the veteran horrormeister is shopping around his latest thriller, which spells doom for his 20-year relationship with Viking-Penguin. King apparently wants to scare up more than the $35 million he got back in 1989 for a four-book deal.

MUHAMMAD MEMENTOS: Muhammad Ali is miffed that more than 300 of his most prized possessions were sold at a Beverly Hills auction this weekend. Officials deny that the items, which fetched $1.3 million, were stolen from the Champ. Among the memorabilia auctioned: the robe, trunks and shoes Ali wore when he clobbered George Foreman in 1974 and a letter Ali sent the Selective Service seeking a draft exemption as a minister.

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